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Cockloft
A cockloft is a horizontal void between a building's uppermost ceiling and its roof, with no habitable space.They are typically of combustible construction, with limited or no access. They may create a large space over multiple occupancies or adjoining buildings. They are commonly present in North America in older commercial buildings and rowhouses, with the roof above sloping from front to back, creating a shallow attic An attic (sometimes referred to as a '' loft'') is a space found directly below the pitched roof of a house or other building; an attic may also be called a ''sky parlor'' or a garret. Because attics fill the space between the ceiling of the ...-like space. Cocklofts have particular significance in firefighting, since they are difficult to access, are unlighted, require stooping or crawling, with no walkable floors, and are typically constructed with exposed lumber. Fire may remain active and undetected in such spaces, and may flash over when oxygen is intr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rain Roof
A rain roof is a second, newer roof that has been constructed over an existing roof that has failed, or which has inadequate slope to shed rain. Since such additional spaces may not be visible or accessible, the concealed void presents a particular hazard in firefighting operations, as a fire may develop or persist in such a space undetected. Description Rain roofs are commonly found in North America over an older flat or minimally sloped roof that has developed leaks, or in a building that has been added to in a manner that requires revised drainage patterns. Construction usually involves framing or trusses that create a space above the original roof, which remains in place, which are then covered with new roofing materials. Side and end walls may be extended upwards to create sufficient space for the framing and to enclose the new space. While rain roofs are commonly found in large, older commercial buildings, they may also be built over single and double-wide mobile homes to im ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rowhouse
In architecture and city planning, a terrace or terraced house ( UK) or townhouse ( US) is a form of medium-density housing that originated in Europe in the 16th century, whereby a row of attached dwellings share side walls. In the United States and Canada they are also known as row houses or row homes, found in older cities such as Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Toronto. Terrace housing can be found throughout the world, though it is in abundance in Europe and Latin America, and extensive examples can be found in the United Kingdom, United States, Canada, and Australia. The Place des Vosges in Paris (1605–1612) is one of the early examples of the style. Sometimes associated with the working class, historical and reproduction terraces have increasingly become part of the process of gentrification in certain inner-city areas. Origins and nomenclature Though earlier Gothic ecclesiastical examples, such as Vicars' Close, Wells, are known, the practice of building new domestic ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Attic
An attic (sometimes referred to as a '' loft'') is a space found directly below the pitched roof of a house or other building; an attic may also be called a ''sky parlor'' or a garret. Because attics fill the space between the ceiling of the top floor of a building and the slanted roof, they are known for being awkwardly shaped spaces with exposed rafters and difficult-to-reach corners. While some attics are converted into bedrooms, home offices, or attic apartments complete with windows and staircases, most remain difficult to access (and are usually entered using a loft hatch and ladder). Attics help control temperatures in a house by providing a large mass of slowly moving air, and are often used for storage. The hot air rising from the lower floors of a building is often retained in attics, further compounding their reputation as inhospitable environments. However, in recent years attics have been insulated to help decrease heating costs, since, on average, uninsulated a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Flashover
A flashover is the near-simultaneous ignition of most of the directly exposed combustible material in an enclosed area. When certain organic materials are heated, they undergo thermal decomposition and release flammable gases. Flashover occurs when the majority of the exposed surfaces in a space are heated to their autoignition temperature and emit flammable gases (see also flash point). Flashover normally occurs at or for ordinary combustibles and an incident heat flux at floor level of . An example of flashover is the ignition of a piece of furniture in a domestic room. The fire involving the initial piece of furniture can produce a layer of hot smoke, which spreads across the ceiling in the room. The hot buoyant smoke layer grows in depth, as it is bounded by the walls of the room. The radiated heat from this layer heats the surfaces of the directly exposed combustible materials in the room, causing them to give off flammable gases, via pyrolysis. When the temperatures of th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
